Hydrocarbons Flashcards
Alkanes
Very unreactive
Combust completely and incompletely
Free radical substitution reaction by chlorine or bromine
Free radical substitution
Three stages
Initiation
Propagation
Termination
Initiation
Homolytic fission of breaking of Cl-Cl covalent bond to form two Cl radicals
Propogation
Free Cl radicals attack alkanes to produce methyl radical as C-H bond breaks homolytically
Methyl radical can attack chlorine molecule forming chloromethane and regenerating Cl radical
These two propogation steps can go on and on as long as methyl and Cl still present
Termination
Eventually two free radicals collide with each other and a single molecule is formed
As no free radicals are made from this the chain reaction stops
Aliphatic hydrocarbons
Organised into chain
Aromatic hydrocarbons
Organised into benzene ring
Cracking
Used to obtain more useful alkanes and alkenes of lower Mr from larger hydrocarbon molecules
Long chain alkane—>shorter alkanes+alkenes
Alkenes
Much more reactive than alkanes
Unsaturated
Alkene plus Hydrogen
Alkane
Using nickel catalyst
Electrophilic addition reaction
Alkene plus steam
Alcohol
Using sulfuric or phosphoric acid catalyst
Electrophilic addition reaction
Alkene plus hydrogen halides
Haloalkane
Electrophilic addition reaction
Major product
Halogen atom bonded to the carbon with the least number of H attached
Minor product
Halogen atom bonded to the carbon with the most number of H attached
Alkene plus halogen
Dihaloalkane
Electrophilic addition reaction